After their inaugural defeat against their neighbors the Lakers (101-103), the Los Angeles Clippers opened their counter in the Orlando bubble by largely disposing of the New Orleans Pelicans on Saturday (126-103). Stars Paul George (28 pts) and Kawhi Leonard (24 pts, 6 rebounds) have perfectly assumed their status to consolidate second place in the Western Conference. This would allow the Clippers to avoid an LA derby in the play-offs before the Conference final.
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Still deprived of Montrezl Harrell, bereaved by the death of his grandmother, the Clippers compensated for their relative weakness inside lighter by an insane three-point address. Author of eight prize-winning baskets out of eleven attempts, Paul George orchestrated a festival for the Clippers, who hit the mark on their first six attempts behind the arc to finish with a staggering total of 25/47! “We just had fun doing that”, he smiled at the exit.
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Things get complicated, however, for the Pelicans, who fall to 12th place in the Conference, four wins from Memphis (8th) and two from Portland (9th), the two potential qualifiers for the preliminary round of the play-offs.
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Williamson still used sparingly
The New Orleans team again used Zion Williamson with the greatest of care. The number 1 of the last draft, still in the process of breaking in after joining his partners late for family reasons, frolicked only 14 minutes, for 7 points and 5 rebounds. Holder, the phenomenon could not prevent his team from taking a burst from the first quarter (37-25).
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The Pelicans, who had resisted so well in the opening against Utah (104-106), this time completely sank, allowing their disbursements to swell to 34 units in the second quarter (74-40), then 42 units at the end of the third (103-61) …
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939
This is the 939th NBA success of Doc Rivers, the coach of the Clippers. This is the eleventh highest total in NBA history for a technician, ahead of Celtics legend Red Auerbach.
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Another rookie who finished top scorer for the Pelicans, Canadian back Nickeil Alexander-Walker (21). Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s cousin, the Oklahoma City full-back, took advantage of the last quarter to score 15 points in 12 minutes, 6/7 on the shot.
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Joakim Noah’s contribution to the success of the Clippers has been modest. The French pivot only played 7 minutes, signing 4 points, 4 rebounds and 1 assist, and his team was dominated during his presence on the floor (-13).
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